Palestinians Flee Northern Gaza as a Cease-Fire Appears Elusive

Several thousand Palestinians, defying the urging of Hamas to remain in their homes, fled areas in northern Gaza early Sunday after Israel warned them through fliers and phone calls of major attacks to come.

Israel and Hamas seemed to signal little public interest in international appeals for a cease-fire as they continued their barrages. More than 130 rockets were fired out of Gaza into Israel on Sunday, with 22 intercepted, the Israeli Army said, while Palestinians expressed anger over the previous day’s Israeli strikes on a center for people with disabilities and on a home in an attack that killed 17 members of one extended family.

Early Monday, Israel also exchanged volleys with Lebanon, to the north, shelling it in response to a cross-border rocket attack, one of a string in recent days, Reuters reported. There was no word on damage or casualties.

Those fleeing northern Gaza traveled in vehicles, in donkey carts and on foot. Some waving white flags, residents of areas around Beit Lahiya ventured south to seek shelter in United Nations-run schools, cramming into classrooms and piling desks out on balconies.

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